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NHL Picks

NY Rangers vs. Montreal Canadiens Series Price

The New York Rangers are back in the Eastern Conference Final for the second time in three years. This year’s foe is the Montreal Canadiens, who bring in the postseason’s best offense and a red-hot goaltender. Can the Rangers surprise on the NHL odds again?

The New York
Rangers Can Win Because…They’ve got Henrik Lundqvist. Although Carey Price might
be getting more accolades right now, it’s hard to argue with Lundqvist, who has
now ousted the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins in the last two
rounds. Those two teams have far more prolific offenses than Montreal. Handling
this unit should be even easier.

The last five meetings between these teams have produced
a shutout. That’s good news for the Rangers because that’s the exact style of
hockey they want to play.

The Montreal
Canadiens Can Win Because…They own this series. The Habs have won seven of the last
10 meetings overall and five of the last six in Montreal. The Rangers have a
really tough time generating offense in this matchup. They’ve scored two goals
in the last six meetings while getting shutout four times. And after playing a
physical, rugged team like the Boston Bruins, this will be a much easier test
for them to pass.

Price has a career 2.06 GAA and .934 save percentage
against the Rangers, and right now, he’s playing the best hockey of his career.
It’s hard to go against him, home-ice advantage and the better offense.

Outlook & PickLundqvist actually doesn’t do so well against Montreal.
He’s just 13-13 against them for his career with a subpar 2.85 GAA and .897
save percentage. Those numbers in each category are his second-worst against
any teams he’s faced in the league. Taking that into account, the Habs are the
team I’m taking with my NHL picks.